what first bike for 3 year old?

[petemurphy]

Hi,

My daughter is 3 in jan so thinking is it time for first bike - what age do they have pedal bikes from? or should they have a "balance" bike first? any tips / good bikes that arent too pink and plasticy!

Thanks

[nugget78]

Would definitely go balance bike rather than stabilisers. And avoid the "novelty" bikes from places like toys r us, they tend to outgrow them quickly, I made that mistake and then found the setapopst was non standard size and was very short so couldnt do anything with it.
I'm lucky in having an excellent local independent on my doorstep, got a second hand one for my lad, took the pedals off and it was essentially a balance bike, once the lad had got his confidence, put em back on and he was flying.

[petemurphy]

nugget78 said:

Would definitely go balance bike rather than stabilisers. And avoid the "novelty" bikes from places like toys r us, they tend to outgrow them quickly, I made that mistake and then found the setapopst was non standard size and was very short so couldnt do anything with it.
I'm lucky in having an excellent local independent on my doorstep, got a second hand one for my lad, took the pedals off and it was essentially a balance bike, once the lad had got his confidence, put em back on and he was flying.

cool thanks

[Engineer1]

On the novelty bike thing there is an argument that a £30 barbie bike that gets ridden till it is worn out is better than the Frog / Isla bike that is lighter and better mechanically but doesn't get ridden because it isn't pink with barbie on it.

[Maty]

We're in the same situation, MiniMaty turns 3 in February, he's having one of these:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...

[Mr Will]

Definitely go for a balance bike first - stabilisers just slow them down and make the eventual transition to proper riding more difficult.

I'm a huge fan of Islabikes for children but don't think it's really necessary for a balance bike. They are much simpler and lighter, so any of the big brands make a decent job of them. Save the extra to put towards a CNOC16 for her fourth birthday :-)

[rhinochopig]

Get a likeabike Jumper. The best BB out of those available IME. Not cheap, but second hand values are good. They're the lightest BB available and are great for all terrains - my boy did the Skills loop at Keilder on his before he was three. They're so easy to learn on.

[Watchman]

Engineer1 said:

On the novelty bike thing there is an argument that a £30 barbie bike that gets ridden till it is worn out is better than the Frog / Isla bike that is lighter and better mechanically but doesn't get ridden because it isn't pink with barbie on it.

Precisely what happened with my daughter, except the novelty bike was £19.99 and made of aluminium (was very light). It didn't have a single ball bearing in it, employing plastic shims instead. It worked though and she loved it/rode it everywhere.

[Vladimir]

A red Islabike served on 5 year old boy very well (he was whizzing around aged 2) and is now doing a good job for our 2 year old daughter.

The 5 year old is on his third Islabike - he appears to be growing quicker than bamboo!

[R.P.M]

Me being bike obsessed, I simply cannot tell you how much thought I have given into the choice of my daughters first bike! Sad I know.

My short list of four were as follows.




http://www.islabikes.co.uk/bike_pages/rothan.html


http://www.moustachebikes.com/uk/mercredi_12.html


http://liferbikes.myshopify.com/products/alley-run...


http://www.likeabike.co.uk/likeabike_models/likeab...


For many different reasons I concluded that the likabike (bottom one)is the best one.

[slinky]

Maty said:

We're in the same situation, MiniMaty turns 3 in February, he's having one of these:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...

I got one of those for my boy (3) last month.. Well built and he loves it..
Hopped on it and got gliding almost straight away..

[uncinquesei]

It's a kids' balance bike, you don't need to spend that much... My boys both learnt on balance bikes, the transition to a "proper" bike is much more swift; it's easier to be able to balance and learn to pedal than it is to be able to pedal then learn to balance. I despair when I see 4,5,6 yr olds on stabilisers. [hyperbole]It's practically child abuse [/hyperbole]. Try these:
http://www.pukybikes.co.uk/learner-bikes/balance_b...

[richardxjr]

petemurphy said:

nugget78 said:

Would definitely go balance bike rather than stabilisers. And avoid the "novelty" bikes from places like toys r us, they tend to outgrow them quickly, I made that mistake and then found the setapopst was non standard size and was very short so couldnt do anything with it.
I'm lucky in having an excellent local independent on my doorstep, got a second hand one for my lad, took the pedals off and it was essentially a balance bike, once the lad had got his confidence, put em back on and he was flying.

cool thanks

This. Let the child choose something they're likely to want to ride.


THEN rip the pedals off

[petemurphy]

R.P.M said:

Me being bike obsessed, I simply cannot tell you how much thought I have given into the choice of my daughters first bike! Sad I know.

My short list of four were as follows.




http://www.islabikes.co.uk/bike_pages/rothan.html


http://www.moustachebikes.com/uk/mercredi_12.html


http://liferbikes.myshopify.com/products/alley-run...


http://www.likeabike.co.uk/likeabike_models/likeab...


For many different reasons I concluded that the likabike (bottom one)is the best one.

ha im not bike obsessed but i do have to compare every one! think £100 is my limit though so:

did you consider:

http://www.likeabike.co.uk/likeabike_models/likeab...



http://www.striderbikes.com/images/bike-photos/ST4...



https://www.pukyonline.co.uk/medium.html

[petemurphy]

although this is the puky bike for a 3 year old the one above is for a 2 yr old apparently

[R.P.M]

Yes looked at the first Likeabike, but prefer the option of the rubber widget, which really enables the kid to get a momentum going when they are a little more advanced. I do know that the build quality of the like a bikes is also very good. I know of a bike that has been through three kids and whilst there is little to no paint left on it, it still goes like new.

THe srider seems very popular in the USA, and a friend has one. I would say that it seems on the smaller side, so may be outgrown quickly. The solid tyres are terrible. They offer no comfort and little grip off road. IMHO the quality is behind the others I mentioned.

Not seen the puky up close.

[Kell]

Slightly off-topic but how come so few balance bikes have a brake?

Is it really not needed?

[Mr Will]

Kell said:

Slightly off-topic but how come so few balance bikes have a brake?

Is it really not needed?

My daughter's didn't have one and normally it wasn't an issue - speeds are lower than a proper bike and she was quite happy to slow down using her feet. The only time it ever caused problems was on long down-hills towards the end of her time riding it. By this point she was confident enough to keep her feet up for significant lengths of time and her speed would build up to the point where she'd struggle to slow down again in a controlled fashion. She only ever fell once, but did have a few wobbles as a result.